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| people evacuate from a flooded home |
Close to 10 families in Mwea village, Gatundu North have been displaced by floods as heavy rains continue to pound the region.
Flood waters marooned their homes following Sunday night’s torrential rains, forcing them to flee and seek alternative settlements in safer areas.
Agnes Waithera and her family told journalists that the floods have left a trail of destruction in their home and farm.
She said some of their possessions have been damaged by the flood waters while crops have been damaged and they now expect little or no harvest.
Waithera said that her livestock including cows, goats and chicken have not been spared either noting that they were forced to take them to their neighbour’s homestead.
“Our pit latrine has been filled with the flood waters. We also fear that our houses have been weakened by the floods and might require reinforcement once the waters subside,” Waithera said.
Resident Boniface Kamau said that they fear an outbreak of waterborne diseases including cholera and bilharzia noting that the flood water is stagnant since there’s no proper drainage in the area.
Image: JOHN KAMAU
He divulged that over eight graves have been submerged by the waters.
“The recent one belongs to a granny who was interred last week amid the heavy rains. We had a hard time because removing water from the grave and had to bring soil to fill the grave from another place. The situation here is dire,” Kamau said.
The rains also saw a house belonging to Jacinta Kamote, a widow and a mother of nine, collapse. She spent the night in the cold with seven of her kids whom she lives with.
This forced area residents and a local church to mobilize resources and start putting up a house for the distraught family.
Meanwhile, resident Ranges Wamunyu who doubles as an area local leader noted that the flooding menace has been a perennial problem in the village.
He noted that during heavy rains, flood waters usually displace locals and leave a trail of destruction.
Wamunyu averred that the only solution to the problem is digging a terrace to drain water from the village noting that there are no drainages in the village.
The residents pleaded with their leaders including Mang’u ward Mwangi Wamibira, MP Elijah Njoroge and Governor Kimani Wamatangi to hear their cries and address their plight.
“The county government has enough resources including machinery to construct proper drainage or dig the terrace to drain water from this village. We plead for our leaders’ intervention,” Wamunyu said.
They also pleaded for basic commodities including food and clothing for the affected families.
BY THE STAR